i18n (was: Java and keyboard)

[Benjamin Fallenstein <b.fallenstein@xxxxxx>]

Tuomas Lukka wrote:
> On Fri, 11 Aug 2000, Benjamin Fallenstein wrote:
> No, not physically chugged. Logically chugged. The space would have
> separate
> CONTENT.en
> CONTENT.fi
> CONTENT.de
> etc. files and a cell ID would probably be in the style
> 
>         15345.fi
>         16324.en
>         13543   # gives the user's default language
> 
> Then, d.language would be a rank which would give all the existing
> language versions. Hmm, how to easily insert a new translation... Ah,
> simply by viewing in that language and editing.

Don't think so. With this system we *can* edit what we currently see,
and that means we *should*. 

Proposed system:
1) Make d.language and d..language-alt read-only dimensions.
2) One step neg on d.language, from an ordinary cell, is the language
the cell is in, in ISO code.
3) This one can be edited.
4) Along d..language-alt are the translations of the cell.
5) One of these is the one the cell currently shows. -- Why? Because the
translation cell can have different connections. If we can see and
address these cells, we can connect them, e.g. for a list of
translations I'm working on.
6) Editing the translation currently shown in a cell obviously edits
what we can see in that cell, too. (Kinda like a clone.)
7) 13543 doesn't give default language, but language currently shown.
(Well, maybe you meant that. Doesn't matter.) 16324.en gives English
content cell, as you said. 16324.en.lang gives cell on d.language?

d.language worries me a bit. But we do need to be able to see which
language the system associates with a cell, and change it if it's wrong
(e.g. b/c the system assumed you'd enter a Finnish cell, but you entered
English text).

> > Yes, it does. I need to support German and English, and I do use
> > "advanced vstreams" with variables inserted. These may be in different
> > order in different languages.
> 
> Yes, but I meant: does it need the finished structural mechanism; if we
> don't have that, you can still cook up something (probably something that
> would be useful as a simple example for the global design).

As my deadline isn't pressing any more, I'm going to do the general i18n
first and wait a bit with that. Then, we can do it like that.

-b.